Hold Still | Sally Mann

A few months ago my book group had a "memoirs month" where we each read a memoir that interested us and then we talked about what made a good memoir. In the course of researching what to read, I found Hold Still by the photographer Sally Mann but I couldn't find it anywhere and kind of forgot about it. But I had it on my "to be read" list and recently located a copy at the library. It was a finalist for the National Book Award and got rave reviews so I was all in.

Sally Mann is an artist whose medium is photographer. She is not a photographer you'd hire for your wedding or daughter's senior pictures, let's put it that way. She unspools her life story and you're (or at least I) drawn in by the many notable artists she knew, her travel adventures and sometimes usual family backstories. You may remember that one of her published collections, Immediate Family, was very controversial (it was the cover story in the NYT Sunday Magazine) because it showed her children nude and there was a lot of talk about whether this was abusive or even pornographic. Having read her stories I'm fairly sympathetic to her point of view that it was simply Art. Her family lived (and still lives) out in the Virginia countryside and playing around in fields and rivers without clothing doesn't seem unlikely (although I can't say I'd make the same choice).

As her story continues, you learn about her family background on both sides which is insightful and helps explains some of her privilege and views. Am I a big fan of Mann's photography? Not really. It's definitely Art and not the photography I'm more accustomed to (as the daughter of a professional) but I see how she was inspired to make this Art based on her sense of place and life experience. Sally is still living in Virginia and still making Art. Her life story is pretty fascinating and she's as gifted a writer as she is in photography. She works in film which I love and the story is told with a ton of family photographs and pictures of her own work.

I think sometimes memoirs about interesting people you don't know anything about, as opposed to famous people with more visible lives, are the most interesting and Hold Still definitely falls into that category. I recommend it.